Baby It's Cold Outside
by MythGirl Writes
Summary: Hina finally gathered the courage to ask out her crush. Where will an afternoon of ice skating take them?


**This is a secret santa fic I wrote for ramune over on tumblr! I had a lot of fun writing this one, and this ship was new territory for me, too. I'm kind of astonished by the lack of content there is on tumblr with this ship.**

 **Anyway, hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"C'mon, Hina, you got this!" Hina paced in front of Kyoko's dorm room, just down the hall from her own. Her stomach kept turning over and over in knots as she tried to pump herself up. She must've been out there for five minutes already, trying and failing to get herself to ring the doorbell. It wasn't like it was hard, either; all she had to do was take a step forward and ring the doorbell. A kid could do it.

But could a kid ask out their crush immediately after without freaking themselves out beforehand?

She ran her fingers through her ponytail once, yanking at a couple knots. Why did she let herself get talked into asking Kyoko out? It was okay if she was just a friend for now, but Sayaka and Makoto encouraged her to make a move before somebody else did. While she wasn't sure who that somebody could be, there was no way she was going to give her crush up so easily.

That still didn't explain why she couldn't just ring the doorbell and do what she came here to do. She didn't want to waste the whole day not doing anything towards her goal. All she had to do was take a breath, reach forward, and-

"Hina? Is something wrong?" Hina backpedaled a couple steps in surprise when Kyoko opened her door. There she was, just peering at Hina in that analytical way of hers, one hand on the doorframe.

"Oh, Kyoko!" This was not good, there was no way she was ready. Then again, there was nothing she could really do but ask. She was already caught in the action. "Um, I was just wondering if you wanted to go ice skating? The gym's got some extra ice skates for whatever reason, and the lake out back is frozen solid! I thought it would be a good chance to spend some time together, y'know?" She yelled at herself in her head. _Spend some time together?_ Really? That didn't sound cool at all. She absently rubbed one of her arms, hoping Kyoko didn't notice but knowing that was unlikely.

Kyoko didn't say anything for a moment. Even though it was only a couple of seconds, it felt like an entire century. In that moment, she slightly regretted taking Sakura's advice to ask her to do something active. Maybe Kyoko didn't like ice skating?

"That sounds like it could be enjoyable." Kyoko nodded once, and Hina nearly exploded with relief. "Let me grab a couple of things first. I'll meet you outside the gym."

"Okay! Got it!" Kyoko disappeared back into her room, closing her door. Hina stood there staring at it for a second, the fact that Kyoko actually agreed still sinking in. Of course, it wasn't like she was going to outright say _no_ , but there was always the chance.

She walked down the hall alone, her footsteps echoing through the empty hallway. Not a lot of people were still in the dorm area. Actually, a lot of them were probably outside as well, enjoying their free weekend. It was nice out, with a couple inches of snow on the ground. While winter wasn't her favorite season, it was still enjoyable.

She waved as a couple of the other students walked past in groups or pairs while she waited. She would ask Sakura for advice, but she was out visiting her boyfriend, and Hina didn't want to bother her. Eventually her gaze shifted to the floor, studying the scuffs on it while fiddling with her sleeves.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Hina glanced up, caught off-guard at seeing Kyoko with her hair pulled back in two buns on top of her head. _Jeez, she looks hot!_ "I hope I didn't take too long."

Hina shook her head vigorously, an easy smile coming onto her face. "No, you're fine," she said, trying to remain nonchalant. She wasn't sure if Kyoko thought this was a date, but on the probable chance that she didn't, Hina didn't want to ruin the experience with awkwardness. "You've been ice skating before, right?"

Kyoko was silent as they walked into the gym, surveying the skates for their sizes. "Actually, no. I've never been. I was always busy with my grandfather as a child."

"Okay, so this is your first time!" Hina didn't really expect that answer, but this could be a bit of a learning situation for both of them. Kyoko would learn how to ice skate, and Hina would learn… Well, she would think of something along the way. "Lucky for you, you have a great teacher like me to show you the ropes!"

"That I do." Kyoko straightened, the skates she picked up in her hands. "Hopefully I'll be a quick learner so you don't have to spend so much time going slowly with me."

They walked outside, the frigid air biting at Hina's cheeks. "I don't mind at all. I think it could be a lot of fun, y'know?"

There was a bench right by the frozen lake, a popular spot for couples. Not that Hina had been there as part of a couple before; she knew of it because of how many people making out on the bench as she'd walked past before. And, subsequently, watched them get busted by Taka because PDA was "not suitable in a school environment."

Hina stashed her boots by the bench alongside a few other pairs before slipping her feet into the ice skates. She tightened and laced hers up easily, but as intelligent as Kyoko was, she couldn't seem to tie them on correctly, instead trying to tie them like sneakers. "Need some help?" Hina offered, trying not to laugh at the slightly knotted laces.

"That...would be appreciated." Kyoko sat back on the bench as Hina knelt in front of her, tying the laces so they were nice and snug, and not touching the ground. After she was done, she stood and offered out her hands to Kyoko to help her onto her feet. "This isn't too bad," she said, already fairly balanced while they were still on the snow.

"Hate to break it to you, but it gets harder once you're on the ice." Hina led her a couple steps forward before stepping onto the ice, gliding out a little bit. "Think you want to try on your own first?"

Kyoko only hesitated for a second. "Sure. Maybe I won't need to be taught, so we can go right into skating." However, one step onto the ice, she ate her words.

Hina caught her by her arms before she could fall into the snow or onto the ice. "Whoa! Here." She was able to tug Kyoko onto her feet without any struggle while still keeping balance herself.

"Thank you." Kyoko was all wobbly legs, glancing down at her feet. They were shifting back and forth on the ice, trying desperately to stay up even with Hina's help.

"Okay, first step, don't look down. That way you don't bump into anyone." And there were a few people to bump into; she saw Maki leading a shaky Kaito on the ice while Shuichi skated next to them, and Ibuki skating circles around Mikan. Hina shifted her grip from Kyoko's arms to her hands. "Here, lean forward towards me a little, so you don't fall backward."

Kyoko did as she was told, looking up into Hina's face instead of down. Hina had to remind herself that they were quite literally on ice and she couldn't afford to be distracted by Kyoko's lavender eyes. "Okay. Right. Now, we glide." She kicked off, starting to glide backwards and bringing Kyoko with her. Even though she was going fairly slowly, Kyoko nearly fell forward before steadying herself. "Push forward with one foot and glide on the other before switching. It's a bit like marching, I guess, or walking with longer strides.

"Like this, then." She pushed forward, though her balance was a little off and she wobbled a bit, gripping Hina's hands tighter as they went. "This isn't too bad."

"Want to try on your own now?" Kyoko released Hina's hands as a response. Hina glided to the side, watching as Kyoko tentatively glided forward, still a bit shaky but balanced enough. "Not bad! Keep going!" Hina glided next to her, keeping pace fairly easily. "Oh, and if you want to stop, push your feet apart and stick one of your skates out sideways, like this." She demonstrated, enjoying the little spray of frost that came up from the blade.

Kyoko stopped as well, albeit shakier. She held her arms out a bit to balance before her feet started shifting again to keep her balance. "This isn't too hard," she said with a little satisfied smile. _God, she's too cute._

"You're a natural!" Hina skated around to face her, a giant smile on her lips. "Ready to go around the lake a couple times?"

"Absolutely." They pushed off together, going a bit slower at first before picking up the pace little by little. "Skating is actually pretty fun."

Hina laughed, though she was a little caught off-guard. "You didn't think this would be fun?" She knew Kyoko could be brutally honest, but jeez, that was a bit rough.

"No, it's not that." Kyoko was silent for a moment, choosing her words like she always did. "I'm not used to coming out and learning something new like this. Usually I'm caught up in schoolwork or detective work. It's nice to have a break and spend time with such a good friend."

Hina's heart sank a little, even though she knew it meant a lot for Kyoko to even acknowledge her as a good friend. "Well, I'm glad you're having a good time." They skated around a little, Hina's breaths freezing in front of her. "Hey, doesn't that make it look like a dragon breathing fire?"

"A little," she said, watching as her own breath froze. Hina breathed out a couple more times, making a good-sized cloud of frozen breath. "Although, if it were actually fire, I doubt it would be this cold outside."

"Good point. It's been really chilly recently, hasn't it? Makes me long for the beach."

They talked for what felt like an hour, skating circles around the lake and trying to avoid being run over by Ibuki or Kaito once Kokichi came out and started throwing snowballs at him, Shuichi, and Maki. Hina was practically buzzing from happiness by the time it started to snow again.

"Maybe we should head back inside?" Kyoko suggested as the snow and wind picked up, looking at the sky for as long as she could without getting a snowflake in her eye.

"We could grab some donuts and hot chocolate!" Hina skated to the edge of the lake, waiting for Kyoko to catch up a couple paces behind her. "Yeah, let's go!" It really was getting colder out, and she wouldn't mind the warmth of inside. The dining hall was always nice and toasty in the winter.

Kyoko chuckled, coming to a stop just before the snow and stepping more steadily onto non-icy ground. They took off their skates and exchanged them for their boots. Hina flinched as her socks became a little damp from the bit of snow that collected in the bottom of them. Kyoko was smarter than that; she stowed her boots under the bench rather than just outside of it.

They made a break for inside, running so they wouldn't be caught in the snow for longer than they had to. By the time they got inside, their hair was coated with snowflakes, and by the time they put the skates away and were in the dining hall, they melted, leaving parts of their hair cold and damp. Kyoko must've been glad that she decided to put hers up.

The hot chocolate powder was still out on the kitchen counter. There was no doubt that a lot of people were going to be using it today. While Hina started boiling the water, Kyoko flexed her hands a little, seeming uncomfortable. "Something wrong?"

"It's nothing," she said, though her voice sounded like that response was reflexive, especially given how defensive Kyoko was about her hands and gloves. Hina didn't expect her to tell her anything, but Kyoko did elaborate a little, catching her by surprise. "My hands get stiff when it's cold out, that's all. It's not that big of a deal."

Hina, deciding to be smooth for once in her life, moved over to where Kyoko was standing by the donuts. "Do you want me to warm them up a bit?" God, all those flirting tips from Sayaka must've come in handy.

Kyoko hid a smile behind one of her hands. "If you wanted to hold my hand, you could've just asked. I would've said yes." She reached out and took Hina's hand, threading their fingers with ease. Kyoko's leather gloves were a bit chilly, but no more than Hina's hands probably were. And wow, she really didn't imagine their maybe-not-quite-date to end like this.

Hina nearly inhaled her donut as they waited for their hot chocolate to cool, steam rising gently from the mugs. "So that was pretty successful, huh?" She took a sip of her drink, scalding her throat all the way down.

"It was a lot of fun," Kyoko said, idly stirring the wooden stirrer in her mug around and around. "This was a very nice date."

Hina almost choked on her hot chocolate, burning her mouth and throat now. "Date? Not that I don't want this to be a date, I do, I just- I didn't think you saw it as one."

"Hina. Not only am I a detective and discerned your intentions fairly quickly, but I know you. You aren't exactly subtle with your feelings."

Ah. Right. "Maybe you'd like to go on another date sometime, then?" It was a shot in the dark, but she had to take it.

Kyoko parted her lips to answer, but their gazes shifted to the ceiling as the loudspeaker clicked on.

"Merry Christmas, losers!" Miu cheered loudly from who-knows-where. "Kokichi, we took your dare so you better pay up later! Hit it!"

Piano started up in the background- Kaede, no doubt- and the two of them started singing Christmas songs loudly and off-key, laughing the whole time. "...I should help my father settle that," Kyoko said, standing and picking up her mug.

"O-okay." Hina's posture slumped a bit as Kyoko moved towards the doorway. She didn't even get a clear answer! Why must they be interrupted now?

But Kyoko paused and turned back. "I almost forgot." She bent over, taking Hina by surprise and placing a kiss on her cheek. "Thank you. I had a lot of fun."

Hina brushed her fingers against her cheek as she watched Kyoko's retreating back, breaking into a grin. She knew that Kyoko generally didn't enjoy physical contact too much, which meant she must really like Hina to both hold her hand and kiss her cheek. Sipping her hot chocolate with the off-key music still blasting over head, a million thoughts ran through her mind. But perhaps the most prominent one was:

 _I can't wait for our next date!_


End file.
